Your Personal Retirement Planning is a Priority!

Your personal retirement planning is as important as your personal
financial planning. In fact, the sooner you make it your priority the
easier your eventual transition into retirement will be.

During the early years of your career you typically don't give too
much attention to retirement provision plans. I know I didn't. But that
is a grave mistake. The years fly past incredibly fast and before you
know it you're within ten years of retirement!

It is possible to
recover and make adequate provision during the last ten years of your
career. I certainly did exactly that. But it would be much easier if you
made your retirement planning the priority right from the start during
any personal financial planning exercise.

Sadly, we are not built like that. When you're young you feel untouchable. And there seem to be an eternity ahead to catch up!

I
smile every time I hear a younger person's indignant response when ever
I suggest that more funds should be channeled to retirement provision.
It is like hearing myself thirty or forty years ago! But when you look
at your personal financial planning and budget and you compare the
priority of being a consumer now with the priority of making provision
for financial survival during your retirement years, there's really no
argument.

You think I'm exaggerating? Have a look at current
average retirement income.
Would you be able to survive financially on that income during your retirement?

On
this Web site I try to discuss all related issues based on my personal
experience, research, and what I observe former colleagues face during
retirement. Do spend some time to read about all the issues you face.

In short you need to:

Start tracking your current spending

Reduce or eliminate spending that's consumption orientated

Get out of debt

Apply as much of your funds as possible to tax advantaged retirement provision plans

The
above bullets may give the impression that the mind shift required –
from consuming to retirement provision - is quite simple. It is not. It
might take some weeks before you can make peace with the brutal change
in attitude that's required. But think about your retirement. Try to
visualize your retirement. Look at the lifestyle of the average retiree
with empathy. And adjust your personal financial planning accordingly.